Worth the hype? Everything you need to know about fermented foods

ORLANDO. Fla – Fermentation is a way to preserve food that’s been around for thousands of years. The process retains nutrients and prevents spoilage. Fermented foods are also advertised as a way to improve your health. But are they really beneficial?

Foods like pickles, aged cheese, sauerkraut, yogurt, and kombucha contain “good bugs” or microorganisms that aid in health and digestion, and they may be able to help diarrhea, urinary tract infections, irritable bowel syndrome, yeast infections, and shorten the severity of a cold or flu.

Foods like kefir – a thick, acidic fermented milk– can also boost the immune system. The drink is even being examined as a possible treatment for tuberculosis and cancer. In a small study, people with diabetes who consumed the popular fermented beverage – kombucha – for three months had their blood sugar levels stabilize.

However, there may also be downsides. A study published in cancer science found that eating a high amount of fermented soy foods was associated with a significant increased risk of gastric cancer.

Despite being marketed as nonalcoholic, fermented food contain some ethanol. What’s more, the fermentation process allows for the alcohol content to increase after the product hits the shelves.

In the past two and a half years, six of the 21 kombucha samples that the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets examined were above the .5% alcohol by volume threshold. Three were about 1%, and two of those hit 7%, which is higher than the average alcohol by volume in a beer.

The bottom line? A little fermentation is probably fine, but don’t overdo it.

Watch the KPRC 2 morning team taste some of the products: